Question: Simplify the following expression: $p = \dfrac{n^2 - 8n + 12}{n - 6} $
Explanation: First factor the polynomial in the numerator. $ n^2 - 8n + 12 = (n - 6)(n - 2) $ So we can rewrite the expression as: $p = \dfrac{(n - 6)(n - 2)}{n - 6} $ We can divide the numerator and denominator by $(n - 6)$ on condition that $n \neq 6$ Therefore $p = n - 2; n \neq 6$